Arias Pistons 12.5:1 Compression 82mm Bore Honda B-series on 2040-parts.com

Mercedes launch new 9G-Tronic gearbox on E350 BlueTec

New Mercedes E350 BlueTec (pictured) gets 9-speed 9G-TRONIC auto It’s not exactly a million years ago that automatic gearboxes offered poorer performance and economy than manual gearboxes, and came as standard with just three gears. But now, automatic gearboxes are so good they can  change quicker than any driver and, with the proliferation of eight-speed auto ‘boxes, offer improved economy and performance too. The next logical step is even more ratios in an auto ‘box, and Land Rover has already revealed they’ll be fitting the Evoque with a 9-speed ZF ‘box from 2014, and the new Jeep Grand Cherokee gets a nine-speed auto ‘box too.

Four new electric speed records for the UK

Lord Paul Drayson has set a new World Electric Land Speed record for sub-999kg electric vehicles with an average speed of 205.139mph over the flying mile. This represents a modest 1mph increase over the previous record – which Drayson set last year in the same Drayson Racing Technologies all-electric prototype. But the ‘Lord of Speed’ (as we’ve just dubbed him) also broke four other records in the process.

Bonkers Renault Twizy EV on sale at £6,690 +video

Renault Twizy EV - now on sale in the UK The Renault Twizy – a four wheel EV Scooter – has gone on sale in the UK this week at £6,990 plus £45 a month battery hire. To try and make electric cars do what conventional cars can do is a pointless task; it’s just not possible, certainly without quantum leaps in battery technology which, despite endless claims to the contrary, seems highly unlikely. But that doesn’t mean electric vehicles don’t have a place – they do.